How to upgrade weapon and shield slots in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

By Joseph Yaden May 12, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is full of weapons, shields, and bows to discover, but Link can only hold so many at any given time. To make the most out of your items, you’ll want to increase your inventory space, allowing you to carry more weapons, shields, and bows. But doing so is a little complex, with multiple steps involved. In this guide, we’ll show you everything you need to know to upgrade your inventory slots in Tears of the Kingdom.

Contents

Find Korok Seeds
Trade with Hestu

Find Korok Seeds

Hestu in Tears of the Kingdom.

To upgrade your inventory slots, you’ll need to trade Korok Seeds with an NPC named Hestu (more on that below). Korok Seeds are scattered around the map and serve as collectibles, just like in Breath of the Wild. In the previous game, there were 900 of them, so there will likely be that many in Tears of the Kingdom.

Trade with Hestu

Hestu's location in Tears of the Kingdom.

Finding Hestu is a bit more complex. First, head to the location shown above, just southeast of Lindor’s Brow. Here, you’ll need to give Hestu a Korok Seed, and you’ll get the option to upgrade your weapon, bow, or shield inventory slots. Keep in mind, that each subsequent slot within the three categories will cost more Korok Seeds to upgrade. For instance, upgrading your weapon inventory will first cost one Korok Seed, but then the next slot upgrade will cost two, and the one after that costs three. In total, you can have 13 weapon slots, 8 bow slots, and 7 shield slots.

Another important thing to note is that Hestu will eventually move from this location. After you’ve spoken with him a bit, he’ll then move to the Korok Forest, and you’ll need to enter the Deku Tree inside the Lost Woods and beat a boss to find Hestu. Alternatively, Hestu can also appear on the south side of the Lookout Landing Well, so look there if you can’t find him.

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Joseph Yaden is a freelance journalist who covers loves Nintendo, shooters, and horror games. He mostly covers game guides…

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The best weapons in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Link holding the master sword in the clouds.

Prior to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Link's arsenal of weapons was usually limited to a couple of options. You could count on having a sword, a ranged weapon like a bow, and a handful of other weapons. But since The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom continues with the weapon durability system from that game, Link will be swapping out weapons far more frequently.

Since just about anything can be used as a weapon, even a stick, the power difference between the worst and best weapons is massive. Just as massive, however, is the size of Hyrule this time around. That can make the best, more unique weapons far more difficult to get your hands on. If you're trying to gear up before taking the fight to Ganon, here are the best weapons and where to find them in Tears of the Kingdom.
Best weapons and where to find them

Gaming

All weapon Passive Abilities in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Zelda holding the decayed Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom.

Thanks to the weapon durability system returning in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom from Breath of the Wild, you will be swapping out weapons all the time. At first, you will only be concerned with having something to defend yourself with, but eventually, you will acquire a nice stash of tools to dispatch your many foes. At this point, you will start comparing damage numbers, but that's not the only factor you should consider when deciding which weapon to wield. Passive Abilities are granted to some weapons that give them a special trait that can make them more useful than they seem at first. To better understand your arsenal, here are all the Passive Abilities in Tears of the Kingdom and what they do.
All Passive Abilities

Passive Abilities are buffs that a specific weapon can come with to give it an edge of some form. You can see the name of a Passive Ability under a weapon when you're quick-switching, or examining a weapon in your inventory. There are 15 possible Passive Abilities in Tears of the Kingdom that are well worth learning about. Also know that if you fuse a weapon with a Passive Ability, it will transfer over to your new fused weapon, so don't worry about losing any buffs by fusion.
Breaking Point
- Damage increases when the weapon is close to breaking.
Charged Attack Stamina Up
- Consumes less stamina for charged attacks.
Demolisher
- Weapon is usable for breaking cracked walls and rocks.
Desperate Strength
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Extra Durable
- Weapon does not break easily.
Fuse Recycling
- Materials fused with the weapon can be reused again and again.
Gloom Toll
- Weapon Contains Gloom.
Improved Flurry Rush
- Increases the power of Flurry Rush.
Quick Charge
- Enables quicker charged attacks.
Revitalized Sword of Legend
- Exclusive to the Master Sword - allows the Master Sword to regain durability over time.
Strong Fusion
- Enhances the fused Material's power but does not add as much durability.
Water Warrior
- Increases attack power when the weapon gets wet.
Wind Busrt
- Weapon produces a strong wind.
Wind Razor
- Creates vacuums when performing an attack
Zonaite-Powered
- Increases attack power if the weapon is fused with a Zonite device.

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Zeldas: Tears of the Kingdom players are creating an industrial revolution

Link with a created mining rig in Tears of the Kingdom.

I expected a lot of cool contraptions to be built when Nintendo revealed that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, the long-awaited sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, was going to have a full crafting system. What I didn't expect, though, was that fans would bring a full-on industrial revolution to Hyrule using Ultrahand.

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